Women's Basketball Hosts Mercer Friday
12/6/2012 3:00:39 PM | Women's Basketball
Georgia Southern (1-4) vs. Mercer (4-3)
Date: Dec. 7, 2012 - 7 p.m.
Site: Hanner Fieldhouse (4,358 capacity) - Statesboro, Ga.
Audio: Gabriel Quintero calls the action on GSEagles.com and 91.9 FM
Video: Live on GSEagles.com
Web sites: GSEagles.com, MercerBears.com
Coaches: Chris Vozab (1-4, 1st season), Susie Gardner (188-200, 13th season)
Full game notes (PDF) // Live Stats
Layup Line
¦ Georgia Southern rekindles an old Trans America Athletic Conference and New South Women's Athletic Conference rivalry when the Eagles host in-state opponent Mercer Friday in Hanner Fieldhouse.
¦ Tickets are $5 or $7 combined for the women's game and Saturday's men's game against Brewton-Parker. Fans can get $2 off either package by bringing an unwrapped toy to donate to Toys for Tots.
¦ The first 30 fans will receive a Chik-Fil-A sandwich, and the team will autograph posters after the game.
¦ It's the final home game of the calendar year for the Eagles, who play their next six contests on the road.
¦ GSU is in the midst of a stretch where the Eagles play 10 of 11 away from home, and tonight's game is the lone home contest.
¦ Georgia Southern is led by senior Meredyth Frye and junior MiMi DuBose.
¦ Frye has led the Eagles in scoring and rebounding in each of the last two seasons, becoming the first Eagle since Tiffany Brown to lead the team in scoring in back-to-back seasons (2006-08).
¦ DuBose has led the Eagles in scoring in three of their five contests this season and passed the 500 mark for her career with 21 points in a win over Kent State. She is six triples away from the 100 mark for her career.
¦ Georgia Southern has lost its last two and is coming off a 79-47 Southern Conference setback at Appalachian State Monday.
¦ The Eagles were picked ninth in the Southern Conference Preseason Coaches and Media Polls.
¦ Mercer is coming off an 80-38 loss at Georgia Tuesday. The Bears' other two losses have come against Notre Dame and Furman.
¦ The Bears and Eagles share one common opponent so far this season. Mercer beat Davidson 46-43 at home Nov. 28, while GSU lost 61-49 at Davidson last Saturday in its SoCon opener.
¦ Mercer was picked 10th in the Atlantic Sun Preseason Coaches Poll.
Series History
¦ Mercer leads the all-time series 30-29, but Georgia Southern has won the last six.
¦ The Eagles and Bears first met in the 1973-74 campaign, the first season of women's basketball at Georgia Southern.
¦ The teams have met 59 times over the years, and will play for the fourth consecutive season.
¦ Georgia Southern and Mercer competed against each other as members of the NSWAC and TAAC until the Eagles joined the SoCon in 1992.
¦ Mercer won the first 10 meetings of the series.
¦ Anna Claire Knight hit a buzzer beater to lift Georgia Southern to a 57-55 win at Mercer in last season's contest.
¦ Georgia Southern held a 55-53 lead with 21 seconds remaining in the half, but Alicia Williams drained a floater in the paint to tie the contest at 55-55 with 6.2 seconds remaining.
¦ Meredyth Frye drove down the court with six seconds remaining and dished the ball to Knight, who was unguarded outside the paint near the baseline.
¦ Frye posted 17 points to lead the Eagles and pulled down seven rebounds.
¦ Knight and MiMi DuBose each scored eight.
¦ Precious Bridges scored 14 points to lead Mercer, and Alicia Williams scored 12.
Quick Hitters
¦ The Eagles have tallied double-digit steals in three of the last four contests.
¦ The Eagles opened SoCon play at Davidson Dec. 1. It's the fourth straight season GSU has opened league play on the road.
¦ The Eagles' 13 steals at Georgia State were the most since posting 17 against Wofford Jan. 24, 2011.
¦ GSU's 71 points against Kent State were the most the Eagles have scored against a Division I opponent since a 72-49 win over Jacksonville State Nov. 26, 2011.
¦ The Eagles' 24-point margin of victory over the Golden Flashes was their most over a Division I opponent since topping Mercer 76-45 Dec. 11, 2009.
Last Time Out
¦ Appalachian State senior Courtney Freeman scored a game-high 24 points to reach the 1,000-point mark for her career and lead the Mountaineers to a 79-47 win over Georgia Southern in the Holmes Center Monday night.
¦ Danielle Spencer led the Eagles with nine points to go along with four rebounds, while Anna Claire Knight and MiMi DuBose each scored eight.
¦ Freeman added nine rebounds and made 10-of-10 from the free-throw line, scoring 18 points in the second half. Maryah Sydnor posted 19 points and six rebounds, while Anna Freeman tallied 14 points, six boards and four assists. ASU made a living at the charity stripe, knocking down 22-of-23 in the game.
¦ The Eagles were 1-of-21 from 3-point range in the game and committed 24 turnovers. Georgia Southern shot 42 percent in the second half but fell behind 29-14 at halftime after shooting 20.7 percent in the first frame.
¦ The Mountaineers used a 16-4 run midway through the first half to turn a one-point lead into a 13-point cushion with 7:19 left in the frame. Sydnor and Courtney Freeman each scored six points during the stretch. ASU pushed the margin to 17 points on a Sydnor jumper before Brittney Benzio scored a layup to make the score 29-14 at the break.
¦ Georgia Southern held Appalachian State to 36.7 percent shooting in the half but could only cash in on 6-of-29 on the offensive end.
Hanner Success
¦ The Eagles are 42-25 in Hanner Fieldhouse in their last five seasons.
The 2012-13 Schedule
¦ Seven games against teams that finished the 2011-12 season with RPIs in the top-100 highlight the Georgia Southern women's basketball schedule.
¦ A total of seven squads on the schedule played in the NCAA Tournament or WNIT a season ago. Defending Southern Conference champion Samford played in the "Big Dance," while Florida Atlantic, Stetson and James Madison were in the WNIT along with SoCon members Chattanooga, Appalachian State and Davidson.
¦ James Madison (29) and league opponents Chattanooga (62), Appalachian State (63) and Davidson (88) all finished with NCAA RPIs in the top-100.
Captains
¦ Meredyth Frye, MiMi DuBose and Aishya Wofford are the team captains this season.
